The 35th annual French Market Creole Tomato Festival will be ripe and ready on Saturday, July 3. The milestone anniversary festival will celebrate the bounty of south Louisiana with beloved Creole tomato dishes, unique bloody marys, and a fresh crop of programming online, at the French Market, and at partner locations throughout New Orleans.
“We are proud to be offering a robust hybrid festival experience this year!” said Leslie Alley, executive director of the French Market Corporation. “We are thrilled that our offerings will include festival day at the Market, virtual concerts, and restaurant and entertainment programming to celebrate the 35th annual Creole Tomato Festival throughout New Orleans.”
The festival day at the French Market will kick-off with the Ripe and Ready Second Line featuring the Yellow Pochahontas Black Masking Indians, the Black Storyville Baby Dolls, the New Orleans Brass Band, and the NOLA Chorus Girls starting at Washington Artillery Park and proceeding to the French Market at 11 a.m. The festivities will include food booths featuring a variety of Creole tomato dishes, Creole tomatoes for sale by local farmers, and children’s activities. Live music is still on the menu at the inaugural NOLA Zydeco Festival taking place simultaneously at the New Orleans Jazz Museum at the Old U.S. Mint.
The Creole Tomato Festival will be as edible as ever with fresh Creole tomato dishes available at the festival and at ten partner restaurants, including Creole tomato shrimp remoulade at Gris-Gris, marinated Creole tomatoes with Louisiana crabmeat ravigote at Cafe Sbisa, and Creole tomato gazpacho at the Rib Room of the Omni Royal Hotel. Special dishes will be served from June 18 through July 16. Ochsner Eat Fit will partner with the festival again this year to endorse healthy dishes that meet their criteria. Eat Fit NOLA is a nonprofit organization supported by Ochsner Health and powered by registered dietitians that seeks to make the healthy choice the easy choice wherever food is served—from restaurants to festivals to grocery stores. A full listing of festival food booths and restaurant partners is available here.
In a salute to the classic cocktail, the festival has created a Bloody Mary Trail that will lead participants to more than 15 partner locations to imbibe a variety of original eye-openers. Partnering restaurants include Marigny Brasserie offering their signature Marigny Bloody created with all natural Brick & Spoon Bloody Mary mix paired with Tito’s vodka topped with Tajin and an assortment of homemade pickled veggies; The Eliza Jane offering the Good Morning NOLA, a Hendricks Gin Bloody Mary with dashes of celery bitters, tabasco, lemon juice, horseradish, Worcestershire sauce garnished with spicy beans and boiled shrimp; and NOLA Caye’s offering the Bloody Jerk created with island style jerk seasoning, thick sliced bacon, and Wickles okra.
In partnership with the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park, the Creole Tomato Festival will stream original performances by Grammy-nominated Louisiana artists.
“In the words of retired New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park Ranger, Bruce ‘Sunpie’ Barnes, if you want good Creole tomatoes you better raise them yourself,” said Matt Hampsey, supervisory park ranger at New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park and Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. “I love that we are able to continue to nurture the convergence of homegrown Creole tomatoes, homegrown music, and homegrown chefs and farmers through this beautiful annual event.” All virtual concerts will stream on Facebook and Instagram via the social media pages of the French Market and the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park at 2 p.m. CT: Wednesday, June 30, Cha Wa; Thursday, July 1, Cameron Dupuy and the Cajun Troubadours, and Friday, July 3, the Grammy-winning New Orleans Nightcrawlers.
To savor the season, the Creole Tomato Festival has partnered with the New Orleans Jazz Museum, the Broad Theater, the Beauregard-Keyes Historic House and Garden, and the French Quarter Museum Association to offer programming for all ages before and after the festival date.
“The French Market Corporation is a valued partner,” said Greg Lambousy, director of the New Orleans Jazz Museum. “Coming out of the pandemic we see an exciting time ahead for the City of New Orleans and the Lower French Quarter in particular. The French Market, Jazz Museum and Frenchmen Street are welcoming new guest and locals alike. The Creole Tomato Fest has been a staple of the festival scene. We are thrilled to partner with Zydeco Fest and French Market Corporation’s Creole Tomato Fest on what is sure to be a wonderful music and food filled event at the Jazz Museum!”
On Tuesday, June 29, The Broadside, will host an outdoor screening of the 1978 horror cult classic “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes.” The evening will start with trivia at 6:30 p.m., followed by the movie. On Saturday, July 3, at 11 a.m. the Beauregard-Keyes House will host Vine-Ripened Memories: A Conversation with Festival Founder Louis Costa (tickets are available in advance). Costa, the founder of the original Tomato Festival, now known as the Creole Tomato Festival, will talk about the event’s origins and share his memories. The New Orleans Jazz Museum at the Old U.S. Mint will host a free Balcony Concert with Kris Royal on Tuesday, July 6, at 5 p.m. The seven museums that form the French Quarter Museum Association will be offering discounts on admissions and shop merchandise with offers varying by location.
The French Market District spans from the Shops at the Upper Pontalba on Jackson Square to Crescent Park, including the Shops of the Colonnade on Decatur Street and the open-air Farmers and Flea Markets. The District is open daily and offers an eclectic variety of shops, eateries, and events year-round. The businesses are currently operating in accordance with city and state guidelines regarding COVID-19 reopening guidelines.
